Directions

Before Cooking

1. Remove the sourdough starter from your kit.

2. Add ¾ cup of flour and a scant ½ cup of water. Mix until well combined
3. Loosely place the lid on top to cover. Place in the fridge.
4. 8 hours before you make the dough, remove the starter from the fridge and place in a warm place on the counter.

1 Day Before Cooking: Make the Bagel Dough

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine ⅓ cup sourdough starter, the yeast, 20 grams (1 Tbsp) of malt syrup, and the water. Whisk to combine. Add 4⅓ cups of bread flour (560 grams) and the S&P Seasoning. Using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until a dough ball forms. Change the speed to medium and keep kneading the dough ball for 3-5 minutes. The dough should be springy, elastic, and barely sticky.

2. Transfer the dough to a greased baking dish and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.

1 Hour Before Cooking: Bring the Dough to Room Temp

1. Remove the bagel dough from the refrigerator 1 hour before class to allow it to proof lightly.

Make the Bagels

1. Preheat your oven to 425F.

2. Portion the dough into 8-10 equal pieces (depending on the size of bagel you want).
3. Press each dough piece into a flat disk. Then fold in the edges of the dough to meet them in the center. Squeeze to ensure everything sticks together. Flip the dough over and form into a nice dough ball.
4. After resting, use your thumb to press a hole in the center of the bagel. Use your thumb to expand the size of the hole.
5. Place on a floured parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and store in a warm humid place for 30-60 minutes to proof. They are ready when they have grown and have a soft, airy feeling to them.
6. In a large pot, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Add in the baking soda and malt syrup.
7. Boil each bagel for 1 minute.
8. Transfer the boiled bagels back to the original tray. Dip the tops in the everything bagel seasoning.
9. Once dipped, transfer the bagels to a new parchment lined, oiled sheet pan. Make sure to oil your parchment paper, the bagels will stick if it is not oiled.
10. Bake at 425F for 20-25 minutes. The bagel will be crispy on the exterior and have a nice golden brown sheen.
11. Enjoy with your favorite fixings!

Make the Toppings

1. Heat a large saute pan over medium high heat. Lay your strips of bacon in the pan and cook until crispy and fully rendered. Remove half of the fat and keep the remaining fat over medium heat.

2. Juliann your onion and place it in the pan to cook with a large pinch of S&P Seasoning. Cook until the onion is broken down, golden brown, and jammy. Add in the brown sugar and balsamic vinegar and cook until the balsamic is nicely coating the onions. Chop the bacon and add into the jam. Season to taste with additional S&P Seasoning.

3. Slice the heirloom tomato.
4. Assemble your bagels. Slice each bagel in half and toast if preferred (when they are right out of the oven, I prefer them un-toasted). I love to do a combo of cream cheese, onion bacon jam, and tomato on some of my bagels and cream cheese, capers, and smoked salmon on the others.
5. Enjoy all the deliciousness you have created. Any extra bagels can be frozen for a couple of weeks when well wrapped. If you freeze the bagels, be sure to bring them back to life by toasting or baking in a 425F oven for 3-5 minutes.

Storing the Starter

1. To keep the remaining starter alive, store it in the fridge and feed it approximately every other week.

2. To feed the starter, place 100 grams of starter, 100 grams of flour, and 100 grams of water into a clean container. Mix until well combined. Label and date the container and place in the fridge until you want to use it.
3. Each feeding, you will only need 100 grams of the starter. The additional starter, called discard, can be used in baking.